~ Howling For Justice!

Black Unity

Black unity is a goal many brothers and sisters have been striving to achieve for years and years, the goal to unify all people of African origin under a common goal of empowerment, enlightment, and achievement, among other things. Black unity is something for which white society, in general, is deathly afraid of, and it was the case for a long time. To many whites blacks united would likely mean a terrible onslaught against their society, a society built from the blood, sweat, and tears of Africans for centuries. So, any attempt to empower and unify blacks have been met with oppositional and oppressive wrath from the dominant society almost each and every time.

Is it possible for a massive group of black people to come together again? Yes, but only if a force so threatening and so overtly racist will it be a definite possibility. Even so, we live in a society that stubbornly and even purposely still think so little of us. This society still believes we are less than human or something’s wrong with us even though things are considerably better today than it was in the 1960’s. However, it still continues it’s damaging and destructive oppressionary tactics in more hidden forms. So, until that “force” makes its appearance, what is keeping us from achieving black unity, and can it be possible once again?

One thing that must be clear is that some of us need to understand that black unity does not mean that we share the same ideas or that we agree on everything. Black people are not a monolith. We do not have a “hive mind.” We are individuals, like everyone else despite what mainstream society thinks. So, turning into the Borg from “Star Trek” is not a realistic idea. Still, why can’t we come together as one nation?

Some may point out that it’s the issues and the kind of mindset each of us have pertaining to those issues. We see the world differently and we see ourselves differently. One example is how we see the problems within the black community. Some believe that such issues as crime, the dropout, and poverty rates, have been caused solely by blacks themselves. They believe that black people have a backwards mentality and refuse to take any responsibility for their own crap. Hence, something is obviously wrong with them, and they need to stop blaming society or specifically, the white man. On the other hand, some believe that some issues are the result of this nation’s unchecked history of slavery, racism, and oppression. The problems within poor black communities is a result of history, society’s continuous policies that make life miserable for poor blacks, and the unwillingness to admit its screw-ups. Hence, something is insanely wrong with society, not with the victims.

Another example would be the division of the sexes, a subject not exclusive to blacks but is evident nonetheless. Some black men, more bitter than a bottle of prescription pills, blame black women for the notion of preferring thugs over nerds to having babies out of wedlock by those same thugs. Some black women, some equally bitter, blame black men for dating non-blacks, whites especially, to sleeping with black women while secretly dick-riding brothers on the side.

The second part of the last sentence in the previous paragraph deals with, yet, another example of division in the black community which is homophobia. It’s hard enough being black in a white dominated society, but it’s harder to be black and gay. Some heterosexual men and women tend to distance themselves from their homosexual counterparts. As a result they know little about what it means to be gay which often leads to fear and hate. The black community is no exception. Black men are expected to be as hard and strong as possible, sometimes even thuggish and gangster. Being a gay black male will likely make one a target for hatred from other black males that project those images for fear of appearing soft and weak. Being a lesbian black female will also invite some hatred from straight black men and women. Whatever the gender, homosexuality will invite fear and hatred which will possibly lead to violence and death.

So, how can black people overcome differences to achieve unity? I have some suggestions, but will they work? Who knows.

We need to acknowledge all of our differences and realize we are individuals. We need to understand that we are still living in a white (American) dominated world. We must know that there is nothing wrong with being black. We have to realize that self-hatred still exist, and learn ways to cure that illness. We need to understand the kind of society/world we live in. We must not learn who we are from the radio or the television. We have to stop blaming whoever and whatever because blaming will not get anyone anywhere. Besides, most of us know who and what is responsibile and why. We have to stop looking to white people as models of humanity (Some of us still do that). We have to redirect our power into empowerment and enlightenment to build our own “nation”. We must realize that if your rich, middle-class, or poor, light skin or dark skin, to white society you will always be a nigger. Most of all, we have to create plans that will not be destroyed by opposing forces.

Unity is possible only if we, as people of African descent, really want to make that choice.

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8 thoughts on “Black Unity”

Some black women, some equally bitter, blame black men for dating non-blacks, whites especially, to sleeping with black women while secretly dick-riding brothers on the side.

Oh…no you didn’t!!!

We need to acknowledge all of our differences and realize we are individuals.

And therein lies the biggest problem. Whether we want to admit it or not, the white portrayal of blacks in media has influenced the way black people think of themselves, and the number one thing white media insists is that black people are all the same. So whenever one of us “deviates”, we get shade from other black people. And while we bicker amongst ourselves over what it really means to be black in America, we’re not paying attention to the dividing-and-conquering which triggered the debate in the first place.

Like I said, it’s one example, especially when it comes to men and women, and don’t forget, I also spotlighted black men as well.

One thing I’ve learn is that when it comes to the media, people hate it when it’s part of the blame game. Make sense when most of it is controlled by white men and blaming white men is seemingly one of the greatest taboos.

Obviously I can’t comment on what it takes to achieve black unity. I just wanted to say that K’s comment is how I feel about it. I see it happening on other lines, white lines, and it just seems to be what WP do to get things done with the least amount of resistance.

I agree with this post. Thank you so much. Every Black person I know says it is not possible for Black people to achieve unity. That aligning ourselves to other racial groups (namely white people) is the way to go now. Black unity is not the same as saying that you are excluding other groups or that you are better than other groups.
It is about Black people coming together under a common cause to address and solve our problems and be empowered. What is wrong with that? Despite our differences (many of which I find to be petty), Black people in nearly every country in the world are disadvantaged and suffering. We are not supposed to be like that. It is ok for other groups to come together and fix their problems. So why not us?

Well, I wished that you would have boardened this topic a bit. Especially, on what you meant by modeling ourselves to whites. I think that we should learn from “whites” or aat least Asians. This is what I mean: 1) nuclear family 2) Low tolerence of those having children out of wedlock 3) Competitive in the academia and career fields 4) Expecting more from the so called teachers in that teach our children. 5) {this goes back to no#3} Teaming up with teachers to make their authority more felt and helping to educate their our children….black “mothers” don’t talk to their children in my observations of them. There’s other issues too. A childs vocab starts to develope in the first years of life. Reading and Comprehension scores are extremely low, to which, leads to problems in other subjects. Then again the parents need to have taken heed to edu as well. 6) Stop being reliant on the system to bail you out when you f-up. The system should be your last thing you go to for help..if you can help it. Even if you had to try to use the resources they give to wing yourself off the system…like the vocational trade school programs available. 7) Affimative action is here for a reason so use it…every other minority is. Kind of weird that we who fought for it aren’t using it effectively. Do it before the Supreme Courts really do decide to desolve it.

The only problem is that we do model ourselves after whites, especially when it comes to pathology. And whites are not a perfect example of a group of people to learn from. Is anything we should look for our own ways to live and govern.

Most of what you suggest stems from stereotypical images of both blacks and whites. You seem to see whites are more ‘together’ with their shit while blacks are just screwed up and too reliant. The fact is that many whites do not come from nuclear or stable families. Some turn a blind eye to having children out of wedlock, and it happens often with them with the high rate of teen pregnancies, some (at least) coming from white communities.

Just because you see some black mothers not talk to their children doesn’t mean that’s widespread or that seeing is confirming. They may talk to their kids in the privacy of their own homes. Who’s to say they, for the large part, don’t care about their children’s education?

Black people do not rely on the system as much as whites do. Way more whites than blacks rely on the welfare system than many care to realize. They are the ones who rely on the government because the government mostly looks out for their best, and worst, interests.

Lastly, the only people who truly benefit from affirmative action are white females. Even if POC use it, they are more likely to get shunned. Blacks in particular are still more likely to get passed over for a career opportunity not because most of them don’t try, but for the simple reason that they are black. And even if they do work to get their positions, they are blamed for using affirmative action. So, either way, blacks are seen as no good no matter what they do.